1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to a toy glider and in particular to an ultra-light weight toy glider that can be catapault launched wherein the user, using eye and hand coordination, develops a skill utilizing the guidance control of the launcher and the aerodynamics of the glider to link the glider in flight to a hand held target or land it on a preselected target. The device relates then to a game of skill as well as a toy.
2. Description of Prior Art
Light weight toy gliders go back to the first folded paper gliders patented at the turn of the century. They are still made and flown for fun today by both adults and children. More recent prior art includes expanded styrofoam in place of paper or balsa wood and it has been employed with basically the same flying qualities as the two, however, styrofoam has very poor shear strength, very poor tensile strength and very poor compressive strength as compared to paper or balsa wood. To overcome these problems prior art shows a preponderance of weight adding and bulk adding built up surfaces. The distinction between a light weight glider and an ultra-light weight glider is based on their comparitive weights. Prior art lightweight gliders start at 1 once and up. 1 once equals 28.4 grams. An ultra-light weight glider has a maximum weight of about 4.0 grams and can be less.
Launching devices for gliders also go back to the turn of the century. They all have two basic objectives: a) get the glider to flying speed before it leaves the launcher. b) get it to travel as far as possible after it leaves the launcher. No consideration is given to accurately controlling the trajectory other than to indicate it will loop, spiral or boomerang.
One such early catapaulted glider is shown and described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,644,271 issued Jul. 7, 1953 to W. J. Shapiro for a "Toy Glider and Launching Platform" in which a heavy paper, or the like, body is reinforced by doubling it and laminating the two bodies together with glue in order to absorb the tensile and shearing strength of the resilient rubberband launching device. The wings also are altered to rest on the platform holding the glider upright. The glider nosepiece is a large heavy syringe shaped piece of soft rubber added to the body. The catapault is a simulated aircraft carrier flight deck rubberband powered and finger released by pushing the glider tail and stabilizers up and away from the platform.
Another such catapaulted glider is shown and described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,064,647 issued Dec. 27, 1977 to J. H. Lemelson for a "Catapault Launched Model Glider" in which an expanded styrofoam flying wing type body utilizes a tail trigger locking insert imbeded in the rear of the built up styrofoam body and a separate front launching insert imbeded in the front of the built up body with a rather large heavy molded snubnosed nosepiece added to it. The catapault is a two handed rifle holding a stick mounted rubberband. The glider is launched by pushing the tail up and away from the gun.
Another such launchable glider is shown and described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,332,103 issued Jun. 1, 1982 to L. Shulman for a "Model Aircraft Glider" in which an expanded styrofoam flying wing type body utilizes a front rubberband hooking insert in a heavily built-up styrofoam body with a large, heavy foam rubber bumper added to it. The catapault is a stick mounted rubberband.
Another such launchable glider is shown and described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,997,401 issued Mar. 5, 1991 to H. Rose et al. for an "Aerial Toy" in which a nose piece of heavy plastic fastens to the entire length of the leading edge of a rather large, thick (1/8 to 1/4 inch), flat piece of expanded styrofoam board. The catapault is a stick mounted rubberband.
Other pistol type rubberband powered catapaults are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,426,437 issued Aug. 26, 1947 to H. E. Cole et al. for a "Toy" and U.S. Pat. No. 3,068,612 issued Oct. 23, 1961 to R. R. Simpson for a "Self-controlled Toy Airplane". Both utilize sliding carriages and long length barrels to launch a heavy weight glider.
A non-catapaulting glider showing prior art is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,246,425 issued Apr. 19, 1966 to C. Miller, entitled "Aerial Glider Toy" disclosing a thick expanded styrofoam planar wings extending from a full length expanded styrofoam non-lifting fuselage, a pair of verticle non-lifting tail fins, a single fixed molded aileron at the rear and a heavy sliding metal clip and heavy non-lifting snub-nose in front to balance all the non-lifting tail weight.
Another non-catapaulting glider is shown and described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,733,737 issued May 22, 1973 to H. Goodman entitled "Toy Airplane", such patent disclosing a thin planar delta shaped wing having parallel top and bottom surfaces, moveable non-locking ailerons and moveable non-locking side stabilizers fastened to a full length tube fuselage.
Another non-catapaulting flying wing type glider is shown and described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,078,639 issued Jan. 7, 1992 to S. Kippen entitled "Model Aircraft Glider", such patent disclosing thick contoured wings with a planar undersurface extending on either side of a large heavy bulbous nose extending in front of built up weighty wings and a full length fuselage all of expanded styrofoam.
In a toy glider of the present invention, the safety features of the glider and the launcher, the accuracy of the glider flight trajectory, the vastly improved sustained height of flight, the compactness of the glider flight surfaces, the compactness of the launcher, the accuracy of the launcher, the durability of the structure of the glider when used, the stability of the flight control features of the glider when in use, the stability and efficiency of the launching control features of the launcher enable the launcher and glider to be used safely and easily as a toy for children or as a game when used in conjunction with a target.